Vine

Where: 211 N. El

Camino Real,

San Clemente

When: Dinner

Tuesdays-Sundays

Phone: 949-361-2079

Vine in San Clemente is under new ownership, with a new chef in the kitchen. Chef Jared Cook, previously a sous-chef here under the original chef/owner, has returned to Vine after a stint at Crow Bar & Kitchen in Corona del Mar.

I had been planning a review of Vine last summer, and it wasn't until my fourth visit that I got wind of the restaurant being for sale. Several friends are the new owners: Cook, plus a former partner and sommelier at the original Fleming's Steakhouse, a former manager from Roy's Restaurants and a bartender from Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale's.

It feels like they've spruced up the patio, but otherwise the restaurant still feels like the same old place, with a sometimes rambunctious bar scene in the front room and most of the same servers still on duty. Although Cook has introduced a new menu, it feels like business as usual. The schnitzel is still the top seller, according to a server. And it's as good as I remember it, pounded thin and perfectly breaded and fried. The kitchen still offers an impressive appetizer of bone marrow, which is now accompanied by a slice of melted Cambozola cheese, which is wonderfully pungent and gooey.

The burger seems unchanged. The big difference now is the fries. They're finally made from scratch. I not-so-fondly remember sitting at the chef's counter before the shake-up and watching the cooks dump frozen fries into the fryer directly from a big brown paper bag. That doesn't happen anymore, and the difference is remarkable.

Given that the new owners haven't changed the name or made any real cosmetic changes to the place, and with much of the original staff still here, I suspect it will take some time before Cook can completely overhaul the menu and put his stamp on everything. The one thing I do wish he'd tackle right away, though, is the horrible chocolate soufflé that's always been served here. Or maybe just stop calling it a soufflé because it's really just a cake, and a pretty good one, too. But it's not a soufflé. They sell it as a soufflé, and consistently call it a soufflé, so they create the expectation that you're going to get one of those light, fluffy, eggy soufflés. If you go in knowing that it's just a cake, you won't be as disappointed when it arrives. Or maybe they can actually start making a real soufflé.

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